Method of producing, storing, and distributing electrical energy by operating gas batteries, particularly oxy-hydrogen gas batteries and electrolyzers



2,070,612 BUTING ELECTRICAL Feb. 16, 1937. H. NIEDERREITHER METHOSTORING, AND DISTBI ENERGY BY 01? OXY-HYDROGEN GAS BATTERlflss FiledMarc Fig. 1

1937- H. NIEDERREITHER 7 ,6

METHOD OF PRODUCING, STORING, AND DISTRIBUTING ELECTRICAL ENERGY BYOPERATING GAS BATTERIES. PARTICULARLY 0XY-HYDROGEN GAS BATTERIES ANDELECTROLYZERS Filed March 18, 1935 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Fig.2 Y Fig.3

reconvert it to the starting evolution of electrical energy.

UNITED STATES rA'r ENT; OFFICE METHOD OF nrs'mm OPERATING LARLY OXY-HYDRO AND ELECTROLYZ ERS Hans Niederreither, Application gen batteriesand electrolyzers.

The disadvantages residing in the high outlay costs or the like of theing methods for electrical special storing means hitherto usual storinorder as required to'.

material electro;

chemically by means of insoluble electrodes with For this purposepressures of, for example, 30-200 atmospheres pressure The advantage ofoperating the gas batteries I under increased pressures resides in thefact-that the current strength of the eleccrtic current produced perunit of the electrode surface increases ever,' in that the cell andgas-conduits'can corresponding to the high considerable economy tion isattained. The

in all spaces in which gas or tained and in all cross sections throughwhich the passed can be effected ately to the increase or however, thisis limited tions of the spaces an or gas electrolyte is theoreticallyproportionpressure. In practice, in that the cross secd'channels must ineach ,PRODUCING, UTING ELECTRICAL ENERGY BY- GAS -BATTERIES,

March 18, 1933, Serial No. Germany March 19, 1932 sronma, AND- PARTICU-GEN GAS BATTERIES Munich,

spaces and so forth are not reduced to 1/100th of magnitude oi' 10 to 30means, according to the invention thekept under the boiling point 01'the electrolytes i at the increased operating pressure.

- The prfoduct which forms the energy carrier can consist 0 solid,liquid or gaseous material and according to this invention it can betransported in one of these forms to the place where the currentisrequired. If the product is in gaseous form it can be stored accordingto the invention in this form as an energy carrier and then be madeavailable again. Instead of thisfor storing dr transport purposes it canalso be liquefied or brought into solid condition or at least it may becompressed whereby, in each case, the storing and transport costs aresmaller.

When using a gaseous product the method according to the invention isadvantageously carried out. for example, by means of the knownelectrolytic decomposition of .conducting liquidsfsuch for exampleasewater electrolysis, alkali chloride electrolysis and so forth,whereby the gases produced form the energy carriers and are stored forif desired, also electrical energy terial elements. 7

In carrying out by the method known per se the electrolyticdecomposition of aqueous solution the high pressure is produced'with'practically no cost. Apart from that the cbsts of storing per unit,volume or the gas under high pressure are less than the costs of storingfor the same quantity of gas at atmospheric; pressure in ordinary gasholders.-'-

'I'he g produced and maintained under high pressur can be transported inconduits, under when required converted again into in the knowncombustible mahigh pressure if energy produced at" one power station isto be suppliedas al peakenergy supply to other works.

The processor; storing can be I particularly 55 employed when the excessof energy is to be used later during a peak demand. One and the sameapparatus provided with storing means can. then bealternately as acombustible material element for regeneration or called pressuredecomposer suitable 'for obtainthe electrode arrangement in the case ofbipolar .in the decomposition of in electrical version of the gasesoxygen, it isonly n trodes with suitable active layers produced in it,hydrogen and to provide the elecand to provide the decomposer itselfwith means, for example a pump, which enables the gases tolmix with theelectrolyte and to circulate in the decomposer.

Such an apparatus according to the invention advantageously operateswith pressures-up to 200 atmospheres and even a the water amounts tobe-' per cent according to the recovery 0! electween about 70' and 80output and the efliciency in the utilized for pressure electrolysis andre-conversion. In order to make the so- I ve that. The emciency energyby electrochemical re-contrical energy likewise amounts to about 70-80 1per cent. The total eillciency of the storing and distributingnprocessamounts therefore to between 49 and 84 per cent. By limiting the outputthe efliciency can be raised still higher.

An embodiment by way of example of the process ill ted in. the drawingsin which Figure 1 shows the whole arrangement for a so-called combustionmaterial element or a pressure decomposer according to the inventionwith connected storing ding to the invention is diagrammatically devicesfor high pressure of, for example 200 atmospheres.

Figure 2 showsto an enlarged scale a part of connections.

Figure 3 shows to a still larger scale the upper part of what is shownin Figure 2, and

Figure 4 shows a part of .the electrode arrangement in the-case ofparallel connection.

Figure 1 shows only one gas and electrolyte circult and it is tobesupposed that the same arrangement is used for the-second gas andelectrolyte circuit which is directly behind it.' In the cell members ofthe combustion material'element the two gas and electrolyte circuits runseparately, each in two parallel channels in the lon gitudinal directionof the cell body; two supply channels extend underneath the cells andtwo outlet channels extend above the cells;

Insulated within a pressure vessel body 2 which consists of individualelectrolyte and in these two electrode spaces. The electrodes 3 whichform separating walls are shown in Figure 1 as being connected bipolarand separated by diaphragms 4. In this manner electrolye spaces I and Iare Iormed'on both sides of the diaphragms. 'All the electrolyte spacesI, are traversed by one gas or gas elecin'olyte mixture and allelectrolyte spaces are traversed by another gas or gas electrolyte Theelectrolyte spaces open alternately into the one or the other of theseparate supply cells at the" bottom and likewise at thetop they openalternately into one of theoutletohannels. 0f the 1 four channelsonlyone supply channel ll and one outlet channel for example with alkalisolution flows channels. The other gas electrolyte,

for example oxygen with alkali solution 'ilows in the otherchannelswhich are not shown. The

v electrolyte-circulatin conduits are preferably arranged listheoellfelectrolyte conduits and the oxygen-electrolyte conduits must be keptseparate in order to avoid mixing the gases, since this would give riseto losses. The following description of the hydrogen-electrolytethereto. a

The hydrogen'necessary in operating the decircuit applies equally welltoboth sets of channels and the circuits connected vice as a combustiblematerial element is conducted under pressure through the tube 1 into thevessel 8 where it mixes with the unused gas es.- caping from the electrov of! through thetubel by a and is forced or sprayed through the tube Hby means of nozzles into the electrolyte in a vessel II. In this casethe electrolyte consists of alkali lyte circuit and is drawn.

circulating pump ll solution, for example KOH and flows through the tubeIt to the vessel.

The cold lye saturated with gas and also mixed with gas in the vessel Itflows into the channel it passes into the correspond the longitudinal"I1 and then through the connected tube ll into the vessel l2 again whereit is again mixed with The tube I! is surro'imded by a cooling jacket itwhich is traversed by a cooling agent, for

example in r m to cool the elec trolyte.

The cell member; from which the electrical energy produced is conductedaway through the current conduits 2i and 26. is electrically insulatedin the pressure vusel i, the wall of which leaves free a space i!between it and the cell member. This space is traversed by a gaseous orliquid electrically insulating substance or is filled with such asubstance which surrounds the cell member.

In the-present case a is employedwhich is contained in the vessel -2iand is conducted to. the pressure chamber l I! areshown.Onegaselectrolyte,

- vided with heatingmeansthrough the tube 20. The vessel 2| is connectedby means of the tube 22 in this case with the hydrogen gas conduit 9 sothat the insulating agent exerts approximately the same pressure on thecell member as the-elec- If the cell member is surrounded witha gase usinsulating agent the hydrogen is preferably conducted from the vessel 8through the tube 23 to the pressure vessel l and leads it through thetube .24 which leads to the pump. with this arrangement naturally thetube 9 is omitted.

In both cases the filling. with the insulating agent or the passing ofaninsulating agent has for its object to lead away with the stream ofinsulat-v ing medium any electrolyte fluid escaping from the cell owingto to ensure continuous satisfactory insulation.

For the regulation of theelectrolytecirculation the return flow tube; Itis provided with a throttle valve 21. The gas circulation can beregulated as well as by the pump ll also by means of a throttle valve18. Since the reaction velocity and the. emciency of the plant increasewith the operating temperature, the uprising tube It is prolackof fluidtightness in order.

liq'uidinsulating medium with a gas conduit and II in orderto be able"2,070,012 3 water from absorbing carbon dioxide to maintain as high aspossible an operating temprevents the perature even with small load. Inthe case of from the air. 7 normal current output, therefore, theelectrolyte In operating the device 'as a combustible mais so heated asa result of the current flow thereterial element the gas in thecollecting containers through that it must be cooled by means or the 60is forced through the pipe 1 into the vessel 8 5 cooling means It I inthat the water in the collecting chamber CI is Ifhe water formed duringthe operation of the forced by means of a pump 1| through an autogasbattery is removed continuously or intermitmatic regulating valve 12into the pressure contently, and the thus concentrated electrolyteretainers 6b. The measuring instruments, manomturned. For this purposein the illustrated form eters. diflerential pressure meters and so forth'10 a part of the'lye in the return tube I1 is continwith which theplant is provided are not shown uously r moved through the tube 3| or 3|re-' 'in order not "to'complicate the general view in spectively' whichcan be connected before or after the drawings; I the cooling device it.The tube 3| or II respec- Figure 2 shows the arrangement oi. the. elec-15 tively leads to acylinder in which un er h p 'e trodes in the case ofthe bipolar connection em- 1 sure or the dilute lye and the release ofthe gas ployed in the whole arrangement (Figure 1) in dissolved in it apiston 30 moves back and forth which on one side of. the separatingwalls 5| which forces the dilute lye entering the cylinder oxygen and onthe other side hydrogen is used upon one stroke of the piston throughthe tube up or produce The separating walls are as 32 into anevaporating boiler 33 upon the'reverse shownto an enlarged scale inFigure 3'connected stroke. This piston 30 works to h with a pison bothsides wit special perforated electrodes. ton 30' which forces the cncentra ed ly en e in On the one side they press the oxygen electrodesthrough the-pipe 35 upon one stroke. through the 41 which are connectedwith them by means of me 26 into the pipe IS on the reverse stroke. Therods 54 against small carbon plates "and again vapornting oiler is h aty n Suitable the? press these on asbestos diaphra m 49 and 25 means forexample by means-of a burner as and on th other-"side the hydrogenelectrodes 50 are in t way vapo ates the ex ss a The pressed by-ine'ansof rods 85 against the other side rious inlet and outlet cpcksor valveswith which of the diaphragms 49. The hydrogen and th h pparatus isprovided ar n nhe electrolyte fiow'th -ough the electrolyte spaces 52water vapour issuing from the evaporating boiler an r c the collectingchannel 51 through open- 33 is condensed and ii desired, it theevaporating lugs 56. The hydrogen and the electrolyte or in plant worksunder pressure, it is utilized by exoperating as a pressure'decomposerrespectively Pension doing the electrolyte alone ls/are supplied throughthe In ope at h l m n s a r nt pr common channel 59 throu h the openings58 (see the hydrogen electrodes become charged negative- Figure 2 Thoxygen flows with the electrolyte ly, t e oxygen ect d become Charged Dthrough corresponding channels and openings flv y a S0 Produce erequired potential at the which are not shown as well as through theelecterminals 25 and 26 continuously trolyte spaces 53 If n w th d cenot p t d s a m u Figure 4 shows to a somewhat enlarged scale tlble m ielement but as a pressure decomthe arrangement of the electrodes anddiaphragms 40 D then the current cimduits are connected to in cellmembers for the case when the electrodes the generator, that is to say,the generator curare connected in parallel and consist of perforated renis-lead to' the terminal 25 and conducted m 2 away a h mi l 6 if pr viusl In overei- The oxygen electrodes 31 which consist of ing asacombustible material element the terminickeL or nickelled iron areperforated and lie nal 25 was the positive and the terminal 26 theadjacent to porous arb n sheets 38 which serve negative pole of thecurren source. In. operatfor activating th oxygen The carbon sheets 38ing as a decomposer the gas circulating pump is r on th ir side firmlypressed by means of the stopped- The hydrogen Pmduced in the cellsoxygen electrodes against the dlaphra 39 collects in e h n l and risesmixed i which preferably consist of hard or soft microelectrolytethroughthe uprising tube I 6 into the porous bb r o besto board and canbe comvesselg; The electrolyte flows whilst being cooled eratlvely'tliin(0 4 mm for example) From the throughthe tube i! into the tube It andfrom other, side the hydrogen electrodes 40 consist of here into thechannel H and back into the indi -pr sse on'the diaphragms By 817 -11818 55 viduelsells The p-mduced thmugh the uch units inseouenceelectrolyte spaces U and 42 55 p 7 i the -3"" store so which are areobtained which are bounded on both sides by nected indivldually by meansof valves 6i with electrodes, T e h dro en electrolyte spaces 4| thepipe 1. The pressure vessels It which are are connected at the top andthebottcm with first, fi l with Water receive h 8 Whilst common channels45 and 45 through openings 43 0 ponding q anti y a e sca e at the and44. Also the oxygen electrolyte spaces 42 are 0' bottom through-thevalves 62 into the pipe 82 and connected through openings with similarcommon from there through an automatically controlled channels which arenot shown in the drawings regulating valve 84 into a collecting trough65 T y an hydrogen electrodes can be pro- 9 water w for decompositionstaken v idedoh the surfaces directed towards the eleca f m a water n inr 66 by m ns r a pump trolyt space with thin layers of the elements of65 and forced -t Pipe from which t r c s groups 5, 6, e 7 or thePeriodic System that is the-sells The tai o in s much ror examp withplatinum and tantalum palas isn essar for the decomposition procladluniand so forth, which as is known, are paress Water is supplied to thecontainer It again 'ticulari suitable. in'b etn ngthe combustionmaterial elements in e electrode material should be insoluble and thatthe water vapour produced in the evaporator unchangeable so far aspossible, under the action 23 is condensed in the pipe 68 by supp ying athe electrolyzer and in the the other by galvanic coating. The activemathe boiling point at .froni the electrolyte and vsion of the energyterial already described can be applied in holes,

the material, or may be used pores or the like of as a coating orattachment to the current conducting material proper. when carbon isused as an active-layer, it may be embedded between the permeableelectrode and the diaphragm and thus assists in protecting the diaphragmagainst mechanical strain and protecting the pores against widening byreason of electrolyte penetrating the diaphragm.

I claim:-

1. A method of storing and re-converting the energy of electriccurrents, which comprises electrolyzing a liquid electrolyte medium in acompartment to produce algas, separating thegas storing the gas underpressure, thereafter re-mixing the gas and electrolyte and returning thelyzing compartment, and effecting a re-converto the form of electriccurrent while maintaining the mixture under a constant pressure of notless than ten atmospheres and at a temperature between the boiling pointat atmospheric pressure and the boiling point at the operating pressureand while removing the prodnot of combination of said gas from theelectrolyte for controlling the concentration thereof.

' 2. A method of storing and re-converting the.

which comprises elecenergy of electric currents, trolyzing anaqueouselectrolyte medium in a'compartment to produce a gas, circulatingthe electrolyte medium through the compartment and an external pathwhile maintaining the pressure thereof at not less than ten atmospheresand maintaining the temperature at a point between atmospheric pressureandthe boiling point at the operating pressure, removing the gaseousproduct from the circulation at a point in said external path during thestorage phase and preserving said gas under pressure, introducing thegas into the electrolyte medium and returning the mixture into thecompartment during the re-conversion phase whereby to produce theelectric current, 'while maintaining the mixture under a constantpressure in said cell of not less than ten atmospheres and at atemperature between the at atmospheric boiling point at operatingpressure, and removing-water from the circulating electrolyte ata point0! said external path durboiling point I ing the re-conversion phase 3.An apparatus for storing and re-convertins the energy of electriccurrents, which comprises means for providing an electrolytic cellhavins mixture to an electroindependent elecfrom hydrogen tive and tothe com temperature the mixture to a temperature between the boiling andthe boilin point at atmospheric pressure point at the operating pr 4. Anapparatus'ior storing and re-converting the energy of electric currents,which comprises means for providing an electrolytic cell having adiaphragm for separating trode compartments, means including conduitsfor maintaining independent circulations of aqueous electrolyte throughthe compartments, gas separators included in said conduits forcollecting the gases or the compartments separatefor the electrolyteinto the corresponding com for maintainin in the cell duringre-conversion a pressure of not less than means for heating the point atatmospheric pressure.

point at' the operating pressure, said circulaa cell during electrolysisand re-conversion which is not less than ten atmospheres.

5. -A method of generating electrical "energy and oxygen gases and bythe use of insoluble electrodes in individual cell compartments andcirculating electrolytes, which comprises mixing the gases andelectrolytes and rent from the electrodes, and removing the boilingpoint boiling point at a combustion of curwater from the circulatingelectrolytes for maintaining of said mixtures. I and reeonverting thewhich comprises electhe relative concentration 6. A method of storingenergy of electric current, trolyzlng a liquid electrolyte partment toproduce a gas; main circulationo! the electrolyte partment; separatingfrom theelectrolyte ing the pressure during electrolysis, circulationand separation substantially. onstantand at not less than 10atmospheres, and maintaining the during electrolysis, circulation andseparation between the pheric-pressure erating pressure; a pressure ofnot less theredter remixing the gas actively circulating through thecompartment and-eii'ecting'a reconversion encr'gy'to the iorm' Imaintainins the circulating mixture under a constant pressure of notless than 10 atmospheres and at a between moving I from the eie f y erorcontrolling independent .electhan ten atmospheres medium in a cominits circulation; maintain- I

